Justice Secretary Elizabeth Truss has unveiled a ‘landmark’ Prisons and Courts Bill, which includes plans to cap whiplash compensation pay-outs.

New legislation underpins measures outlined in the Prison Safety and Reform White Paper, which will transform how prisons operate.

An announcement from the UK Government’s Ministry of Justice, said car insurance premiums will be cut by around £40 a year, with new fixed tariffs capping whiplash compensation pay-outs and a ban on claims without medical evidence, helping to crack down on the compensation culture epidemic.

Commenting on the Bill, James Dalton, Director of General Insurance Policy, Association of British Insurers, said: “The reforms to whiplash claims set out in the Bill cannot come soon enough. For far too long claimant lawyers have been defending a system riddled with exaggerated and fraudulent claims because they have been profiting handsomely from it. The gravy train must stop. Motorists know that the UK’s roads have been getting ever safer, so why have whiplash style claims been rising? People want an insurance claims system that provides compensation and support to those who genuinely need it. What they don’t want is to be plagued by spam calls and texts from ambulance chasers, whilst personal injury lawyers continue to profit from a broken system in urgent need of reform.”

The Prisons and Courts Bill: What is means for you (Ministry of Justice website)